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Page 3-65 of the 2004 Owner's Manual says the following in its list of DIC Warnings and Messages:

SERVICE COLUMN LOCK (Manual Transmission Only): If the system that controls the locking and unlocking of the steering column does not work properly, have the vehicle towed to a dealer for service.

Of course, the Manual tells you to take the vehicle to a dealer for a lot of things... That being said, the column lock is a funny animal that can be affected by something as simple as low battery voltage. You might want to review this thread, which contains some links to videos that capture a presentation by another forum member, Paul ("C4C5specialist"), about this topic. If your battery is old, you might want to consider replacing it; at least check the voltage and ratings per the information contained in the videos. It may solve the issue with the column lock.

According to Paul, the column lock bypass that became the 'band-aid' fix from GM is almost never needed. Once you check your battery, if you're still experiencing problems, you might shoot Paul a PM if he hasn't already chimed in to this thread; he's probably best-qualified to speak authoritatively on this topic. If the column lock releases, you might be able to drive the car, but I think there's an inhibitor that keeps you from exceeding something like 5 mph; if it releases and the inhibitor does not engage, you're probably fine to drive the car, since the column lock cannot engage while you're driving.

Have you checked your battery? As Paul points out in the videos, the battery is very critical. Paul makes a very good point that the battery needs to meet very specific specifications. Make sure that the battery you put in meets these specifications.

Come to think of it, a prompt did show up on the DIC immediately prior to the column lock prompt that said something like "charging system fault". Think the battery is going?

BTW, it is the original battery and the car has 62,000 miles. Thanks foir the response!

ICOMP

It is very possible that low voltage from a discharged or bad battery is your problem, column lock procedures are extremely voltage sensitive. Have your battery fully charged, and then properly tested with a carbon pile load tester to see if it is still good (keep in mind that "fully charged" does not mean that the battery is good, only that it is ready to be tested). If you do need a new battery it is important to select a battery that has a minimum of 550 CCA (cold crank amps) and 120 RC (reserve capacity) rating, the RC rating is very important in C5's. Good luck with it.

It is very possible that low voltage from a discharged or bad battery is your problem, column lock procedures are extremely voltage sensitive. Have your battery fully charged, and then properly tested with a carbon pile load tester to see if it is still good (keep in mind that "fully charged" does not mean that the battery is good, only that it is ready to be tested). If you do need a new battery it is important to select a battery that has a minimum of 550 CCA (cold crank amps) and 120 RC (reserve capacity) rating, the RC rating is very important in C5's. Good luck with it. <img class="inlineimg" title="Smilie" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.corvetteactioncenter.com/forums/images/smilies/smile.gif" smilieid="1">